Our Professional Disaster, and Other Opinions

Okay...get ready for another one:

By now, we have heard and seen the sadness of yet another tragedy in this world. The sinking of the "Sewol," a South Korean ferry that has left nearly 300 people still missing. Even sadder, nearly all the passengers on this particular voyage were high schoolers headed for a field trip to an island.

Ferry disasters are not uncommon in this part of the world. It is too soon to tell exactly what happened: it appears that the vessel struck a reef or something, listed sharply to port and sank very fast. Boats like those are not built with the watertight integrity of modern ocean liners; belowdecks is cargo area and space for vehicles.

You can imagine the damage the boat took, and how quickly things changed.

From what we also know (from the sad and eerie messages texted from some who didn't get out), the passengers were told to stay put. An order to abandon ship did not come for 35 minutes, and survivors say they never heard it.

Staying put at first is standard procedure. You don't want to start a panic and a stampede, I get that. Efforts to correct the list failed; only then, did the order get made to abandon.

That seems to be about the size of it all. Now, why am I going on about it?

The media coverage, which I have tried to avoid apart from the sources that I felt more trustworthy. While I do not understand the language, I watched the Korean Broadcasting Network's coverage online. They did special coverage, and as I note below, they ran it in an interesting way.

They run like a PBS station, or Japan's NHK. A very professional, low-key and proper presentation. NPR would be the same way, as would the BBC. Yes, I am biased, I am part-time employed by an NPR affiliate, but I know how they work.

I know how the other side works, too. 

I made a point of keeping an eye on how the Beeb, NHK, and the Asian networks handled the matter. They have done it for the most part with confidence in themselves, calmness, and yes...PROFESSIONALISM.

Something lost on far too many of my colleagues.

Now, I was prompted to write this and include comments I made on this site:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/south-korea-ferry-prosecutors-seek-arrest-warrant-for-captain-1.2614660

Commenters are furious over the CBC's usage of footage, photos, etc. They are getting in a lather over it. Well, they have got some justification, I see it.

They don't watch much American TV, I don't bet. Look at what we have, and what our broadcast media has mostly degenerated into.

I do not mean to sound like an old guy, nor do I wish to slag my colleagues, but I'm not impressed with even the veteran behaviors exhibited by people you'd think had more of an idea of how to act before a camera.

I'm putting the finger on the TV side, which I don't have much experience in, but have enough to know.

Here's what I wrote (whether or not they'll permit its use, I don't know):

"Look, I fully understand the complaints you have, regarding the use of the grief of the families who are still wondering if their loved ones are alive. I would feel as devastated as they. If you think the CBC is bad (not to defend them), I suggest you watch American cable networks if you can stomach it. 

I work in this media. I agree, we all too often use the suffering of others for our own egos, gain, ratings, etc. That's why I don't work in television. In a 24/7 news cycle you are going to see the same stories and the same footage, over and over again. The days of the six o'clock news with the National or what have you at seven, with a ten o'clock update are long gone. That's why you see the recycling. There just is not enough content to fill it all. 
 
Now...I have watched the Korean Broadcasting Network's coverage. They were going with special coverage during the unfolding events, but they get high marks for professionalism, and keeping their emotions in check. They did damned well. Same for NHK and the BBC; they did not go "wall to wall" with coverage. In comparison, CNN's obsession with the Malaysian airline disaster shows how bad we can get. 
 
I've spent 30 years in this business folks...I don't like the way it's gone anymore than you. I cringe every time I see a cable news host lose their s--t and do what their bosses tell them to, and whore themselves with emotional ranting, and blame-tossing. And yes, they will do anything they can to stir emotions and keep people watching. 
 
The last two generations of "media people" (my term) are largely a bunch of smart-assed little brats who have grown up on talk radio, fake reality TV and Fox News. They think this is news. Most of these kids wouldn't last 15 minutes in a proper newsroom. Today, I can name colleagues whom I like as people, and who have the tools but don't get the application. We call them, "Book Smart, Street Stupid." 

This is how it is. If you do not like it, let them know, and not just on a comment board where no one is paying attention. It would also do to stop watching that s--t. I grew up near the Canadian border, and I always admired the way the news was presented. To some extent, I still hear it being done well. 
 
Forgive my going off, because I hope you understand why things are done the way they are. Honestly, if I were in charge, I might well use some of the same footage you are complaining about, because it does help tell the story. All the time? No, probably not. 
 
That all said, I remain saddened by the stories of those people who are lost and their families. We can't imagine their grief unless we've lived through it. Don't think we in the business like these stories: we don't! We would love nothing better than to just tell you about mundane, and yes, even boring happenings. 
 
Like your countrywoman sang, "A little good news," yes, we'd rather do that."

Well, there you have it: our own addiction to knowing everything right this minute, and the pressure we face to get it out there, right here, right now and without delay.

We don't have the resources, folks. We don't have the money, we don't make the revenue to do it the way you think it should be done. Absent of that, I know people in newsrooms who work their asses off day in and day out to do it "right." Even if they don't get it first, and it's not breaking news anymore.

Too many in this business do it in a way that is wrong: "GET THE STORY FIRST, BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY. WHO CARES IF IT'S INACCURATE? THE PUBLIC HAVE SHORT-TERM MEMORIES, THEY'LL FORGET."

No, actually they won't. And they don't. They don't forget when we fuck up. Whether or not they actually turn away, well, that's another matter for debate.

Guess the thing I'm getting at is: do you think we have too much of it? It's up to us to decide to turn it off, and come to it when we need or want it.

As it stands today, I am on the edge of this business. I am outside looking in, for the most part. What I do makes a difference in small ways, and I am thankful that what I do provides a service. A real one: if you want it, it's there. If not, that's cool, because you may not need it.

Addiction. Yes, we are addicted to some pretty crazy things. News (mostly which confirms our own ideas), so-called Entertainment, brain-numbing shows, and obsessively watching every move so-called celebrities make. Though for the latter, most of them really don't do anything I would consider to be that spectacular.

In the end of this...it may seem a rather unusual step away from the topic, but here it is. We lost one of the great authors of our past century. Gabriel Garcia Marquez left us at the age of 87. The key adjective to describe his work is "imaginative." He mixed real life (much of it around his native Colombia) with fantasy. Imagination...not something you need to live by, but something to make you think and give you a little of what we all need. Not too much, but enough.

We all need to think about it, really think about what is important. I am trying to shed light on this for you. While I also try to figure out how much I need...and don't want.

Thoughts for the day, and hopefully for a bit longer while I sort out my own issues. My own writings are not meant to shake foundations and destroy worlds; they have their own place, and I hope to live long enough to see the day that stories like "Parasite Girls" get their day. I'd like to know what readers think, and hear it in their words. That would be a bigger payoff than money.

Okay...let's hope for a little better in the coming days.

Peace, Outta Here...

Da Bruins, Radio Coverage, Writing and Stuff

Well, congrats to the Boston Bruins are in order...they pulled out Game 7 in fine fashion last night, beating Vancouver on their home ice, 4-0.


As a native New Englander, I well remember the last time the Bruins won the cup, in 1972.  I was only about six years old at the time, and being the dumb kid I was, I wanted the Rangers to win.  No idea why.


I was producing the Senators' win over the Thunder on the Ticket last night, but I made it to my car by early in the third period.  It was already a done deal; the Canucks just could not get back into the game.


I tuned to Home Ice, the hockey channel on Sirius/XM.  Now in playoff sports, S/XM takes the home radio feed, so I got to hear the Vancouver broadcast team handling the call.  To my surprise they were playing it straight.  No real homerism, they called the game right, fairly and professionally.  Something that is lost on NESN and quite a few American commentators.


The only crack came after the empty-net goal...the color guy said, "That sucks."  And I'm sure it did.  The guys appealed for calm, as they were watching a CTV raw feed from the city...does Vancouver have professional rioters living there?  It's clear to me those people were out to start trouble, and were not real hockey fans.


Either way, I'm glad the Bruins won it, a long time coming, and happy for Tim Thomas, the University of Vermont product...yay, Catamounts!


I went to UVM for about two months one summer, that's my only connection.


That said...another day of editing SDS-1...it's getting much better.  My friend Riz and I had a brief talk about the recent feelings thrown down by a publisher...they have good points, but the readability is still there.  Riz of course would tell me if it wasn't...she pulls no punches.


Another game tonight at the Ticket, and I hope I can keep up a good level of concentration on the edit.  This needs to be finished and soon.


"Five Fifty-One," track from Bruce Cockburn's new CD on my Walkman...nice...trying to keep it together here...much to do.


So yeah...B's fans rejoice, Canucks fans clean up their city and I have to get on with life.

Blink...and you just might miss it!

Paul Weller's song is in my head.


It is Monday afternoon, and I'm slowly recovering from the weekend.  A busy one.


To recap:  my flight into BWI was quick and uneventful.  Saturday was busy!  Did the sports updates for KYW until 5, then zoomed up the highway to Clear Channel to help with the Bears game on the Ticket.  Got to run most of the game, and it went well enough.  Still don't know a lot of the nuts and bolts, but getting there.


The instructions are good, but in all caps, and single-spaced, and I can no longer read this stuff.  I'm rewriting them to add notes, tips, etc.  Mostly for me, but maybe I'll pass it on to the boss when it's done.


Sunday...finally polished off another edit of "Parasite Girls."  I really enjoy this story; it is a good one, and has a lot to offer to people, to think about stuff, and how they see others in their lives.


Seems that Empress Riz has been scheming to hook me up with her dear friend KJ.  Got a call out of the blue at 11 pm Saturday, just as I was leaving the CC studios.  I was so exhausted that I couldn't really communicate well.


Did speak to KJ again Sunday; she seems very nice.  When people try to "hook me up," it doesn't usually work, but I don't want to put the kibosh on anything, yet.  KJ sounds like a sweetheart, so friends at least is always good.


Will be seeing them all NYE...heh.  That should be fun.


Now Sunday...rolled up in time to watch the amazing comeback of the Eagles over the Giants.  Now, you have to understand:  I FUCKING DESPISE THE NEW YORK GIANTS!


Why?  Well, in the 70's, long before Cable TV, growing up in VT, all we had was the antenna on the roof of the house to get any sort of reception.  We were too far away and too low in the valley to get the NBC affiliate in Plattsburgh, NY; as a result we had the CBS, ABC and Canadian stations.


This is why I was probably the only Montreal Canadiens fan living in Vermont!


So yeah...every damn Sunday, we had to watch hideous New York Giant football teams.  Occasionally, CTV in Montreal would run AFC games on Sunday, so we'd get the Steelers and occasionally the Patriots.


But the Giants...sucked bad in those days.  I remember "The Fumble," and that amazing finish, which is now being likened to what happened yesterday.


As someone blogged, "Joe Pisarcik is finally off the hook."


Matt Dodge is the new patsy for the New York football Giants, after he tried to punt out of bounds, but the ball went off the inside of his foot, and right to DeSean Jackson, the most dangerous return man in the league.


Amazing.  I don't even like the Eagles, because 95% of their fans are insufferable, whining, complaining jackasses!  Only a grade higher than Boston sports fans of any kind.


But that was one hell of a game.  I love getting paid to watch sports.  It's the only reason I could sit long enough to watch them.


While doing my update job, and working on some additional Radio PA Network stories (Polamalu's ankle injury may keep him and his hair out of the game until the playoffs), I watched his Steelers get their ass handed them by the Jets.


Then I saw a great Sunday nighter.  The Patriots had all they could handle from a very good Packers team, led by a backup.  Matt Flynn has nothing to be ashamed of; that kid did a good job, and his team rallied around him.


Packer fans are gonna piss and moan about the clock management.  Here's the problem:  Flynn was trying to listen in the helmet headset for what play he was to call.  He couldn't hear because of all the noise, and the clock ran out.


THIS is what is wrong with coaches calling plays:  NO AUTONOMY FOR THE QUARTERBACK, UNLESS YOUR NAME IS BRETT FAVRE!


Flynn, and this is hindsight...SHOULD HAVE CALLED THE PLAY HIMSELF!  He knew he was running out of time and had to hustle the team to the line.  He should have just said, "Fuck it, I'm calling this one."


I am sick and tired of coaches calling the plays for the QB.  Tom Landry was the first to do it way back in the day, but that was unusual.  


Today, every coach calls the plays.  The QB executes; okay, well and good, but your quarterback needs to have the space to change the play or to call one as he is on the field and is aware of changes to the defense.


Okay, enough football talk.


Now...I had good work over the weekend, and I am back on the job Xmas Day, but that's cool.  I always seemed to find myself working on Xmas, so I don't mind it at all.  I'll see what else is going on here.


Housekeeping duties...piles of paperwork and stuff that I ignored while I was in Maine last week, and stuff to do before I can think about whatever the hell it is I have to do today.